Just licensed in Virginia? Your first 90 days.

What your license covers.

• Virginia has one license level, home inspector. Doing a home inspection without one is unlawful. (18VAC15-40-20)
• Inspecting a new residential structure, including inspections during construction, requires the NRS (new residential structure) specialty on top of your license. (18VAC15-40-20 B)
• To add the NRS specialty, complete a board-approved NRS training module within two years before you apply, and pay the $80 application fee. (18VAC15-40-35, -50)
• There is no associate or trainee license. Someone gaining experience works under your direct supervision, which means you are physically on the premises the whole time. (18VAC15-40-10)

What every report needs.

The standards of practice in 18VAC15-40-130 set the floor for every Virginia report. The key requirements:

• Your name, address and contact information, your license number and expiration date, the client’s name and contact information, the property address, and the date, start and finish times and weather. (18VAC15-40-130 B)
• A written description of the readily accessible components and readily observable defects in eight groups: structural; roof, attic and insulation; exterior; interior; plumbing; electrical; heating; and air conditioning. (18VAC15-40-130 C)
• How you inspected the crawl space and the roof covering, noted and explained. (18VAC15-40-130 C)
• Every component or system you could not inspect, and why. Systems that were off, winterized or secured don’t have to be started, but the report must say why they weren’t inspected. (18VAC15-40-130 D, E)
• Whether each readily accessible smoke alarm is in good working order, plus the substance of the smoke alarm statement set out in the rule. A contract can’t exclude the smoke alarm requirements. (18VAC15-40-130 F, -120 D)
• If you see yellow CSST gas tubing in a home built before the 2006 Virginia Construction Code took effect, note it and include the bonding and grounding statement word for word. (§ 54.1-517.2:1)
• A report may not state that a Uniform Statewide Building Code violation exists, advise the client whether to go ahead with the purchase, or give an opinion of value. (18VAC15-40-155)

Sign the contract before you start.

• The client and you both sign a written contract before work begins or any payment is accepted, and the client gets a fully executed copy before you start. (18VAC15-40-120 A)
• It must include, among other items, your license number, the cost, the areas and systems to be inspected, a statement that the inspection isn’t a code-compliance review, any exclusions, an estimated report delivery date, cancellation rights and a general limit on your liability. (18VAC15-40-120 B)
• It must say the report is based on visual observation of existing conditions at the time of the inspection and is not a guarantee, warranty or insurance. (18VAC15-40-120 C)
• Changes to the cost, scope or estimated completion date must be in writing and signed by everyone. (18VAC15-40-120 A)

Keep your liability insurance in force.

• You need general liability insurance with limits of at least $250,000 per occurrence. A business policy with those limits can count if you are listed as an additional insured. (18VAC15-40-30)
• Report any cancellation, amendment, expiration or other change to the policy to the board within 30 days. (18VAC15-40-160 D)

Plan for your first renewal.

• Your license expires two years from the last day of the month it was issued. (18VAC15-40-60)
• Complete 16 contact hours of continuing education each renewal cycle. A contact hour is 50 minutes, and classroom, distance and online courses all count. (18VAC15-40-72, -10)
• Renewal needs the application, proof of insurance, proof of your CE and the fee, received before your license expires. If you hold the NRS specialty, you also show proof of 4 hours of board-approved NRS CE, which can count toward the 16, unless you took the initial NRS module within the year before your license expires. (18VAC15-40-73, -75, -80)
• Miss renewal by more than 30 days and you must apply for reinstatement. Inspecting on an expired license can count as unlicensed activity. (18VAC15-40-90, -105)

Keep your records.

• Keep every inspection record, including written reports and supporting documentation, for three years from the date of the inspection. (18VAC15-40-160 C)
• Keep your CE records for three years after the end of the renewal cycle you earned them in. The board may audit them. (18VAC15-40-78)
• Report a change of address or legal name to the board within 30 days. (18VAC15-40-160 A, B)

Avoid the conflicts the rules prohibit.

• Don’t design or perform repairs on a property within 12 months after inspecting it, unless you bought the home after the inspection. (18VAC15-40-140 A)
• Don’t take a job where your pay or future referrals depend on your findings or on the sale closing. (18VAC15-40-140 A)
• Don’t accept or offer commissions or allowances from other parties dealing with your client. (18VAC15-40-140 D)
• Keep inspection results confidential unless your client approves, except where there is imminent danger to life or health. (18VAC15-40-140 B)